By Michael Atherton, Cricket Expert & Columnist
England’s “interesting” Test squad selection is further proof that captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum will continue to “take risks” which align with their Bazball philosophy, says Sky Sports Cricket‘s Michael Atherton.
Surrey wicketkeeper-batter Jamie Smith and Nottinghamshire seamer Dillon Pennington earned their maiden Test call-ups for the upcoming Test series against West Indies, which starts on Wednesday, July 10, live on Sky Sports.
Smith looks set to keep wicket for England with Jonny Bairstow and Ben Foakes not included in the squad, while Warwickshire seamer Chris Woakes is back in the fold for the first time since last July.
“It’s a very interesting selection for all kinds of reasons. Sometimes when Test squads get announced you think there’s not much to take about, but this one felt quite a significant squad to me,” said Atherton, speaking on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast.
“Their punt for Jamie Smith as wicketkeeper batter is interesting. He’s 23-years-old and an incredibly promising young batter but not the first choice pic for his county Surrey in first-class cricket.
“Bairstow is not in the squad at all. The reserve batter is Dan Lawrence, so it feels like Bairstow has been moved aside and they’ve chosen Jamie Smith.
“England have also gone Shoaib Bashir, who again, is not the first pick for his county side Somerset. When they play one spinner and Jack Leach is fit, he plays.
“Pennington caught my eye back in March, right at the start of the season, when I watched him on a livestream and remember thinking, he’s looking good.
“He took people’s eye about five or six years ago when he was an England’s Under-19s player at Worcester. He had a good season and people were saying he’s looks a highly promising young fast bowler, like many kinds of young players he stagnated a bit.
“He’s moved to Nottinghamshire for a chance to work with Peter Moores and Kevin Shine at a bigger club and from what I’ve seen this year, he’s back on the up.
“So that’s an interesting selection, and he’s a beneficiary of Josh Tongue who’s injured and Ollie Robinson, who had a poor winter, really played at one Test match in Ranchi but with a poor performance so he’s been nudged aside as well.”
When England announced they would pick then debutants Tom Hartley and Bashir to tour India in the winter, people were also shocked.
During that tour, right-arm off-spinner Bashir claimed a maiden five-wicket haul while left-armer Hartley took 20 scalps making him the series’ leading wicket-taker.
Hartley also finished the Test in Hyderabad with a match-winning 7-62, the best by an England spinner on debut since 1933.
“You do feel this selection panel have an interesting relationship with county cricket.” added Atherton.
“Earlier this year, Rob Key said whoever they pick won’t necessarily be on county championship form.
“They’re not afraid of taking risks. I haven’t seen much of Jamie Smith keep wicket because he hasn’t done it that much in first-class cricket.
“But he’s a very, very promising batter, very talented and fits in perfectly to the Bazball mould which of course Foakes doesn’t.”
Last week, Bashir conceded the joint-most expensive over in County Championship history with a 38-run eight-ball over for Worcestershire.
Despite this, McCullum and Stokes have continued to back him.
When the tour of India concluded in January 2024, McCullum called on counties to give their young spinners a chance following the impact they had.
“Thinking about Bashir and the Ashes, England are going to be playing one spinner unless they go to the subcontinent where they might play two or three,” added Atherton.
“I think they see in Bashir, with his accuracy, high bounce and drop, that he can do a job, as that one spinner both holding and attacking, in the same way that Nathan Lyon does for Australia.”
Sky Sports‘ Nasser Hussain added: “Graeme Swann did for England for a number of years. Bashir is no Swann yet, but they see that drop and that bounce.
“England fancied him before and that was out of the blue. We were driving to Isleworth when the announcement was made and I had to watch footage of him because I’ve never seen him bowl.
“They backed him and one thing with this selection panel, if they believe in you and they back you, they will give you a long time and I quite admire that.
“Now, Bashir has just got to go and do it against the West Indies.”
Watch the first Test between England and West Indies, at Lord’s, live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10am on Wednesday July 10 (11am first ball). The series then continues at Trent Bridge (July 18-22) before the final game at Edgbaston (July 26-30)
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